The Pittsburgh Panthers travel tonight in a College Basketball Picks match up against Big East Conference rival West Virginia. The Panthers have won two in a row including a huge come from behind victory over the Syracuse Orangemen back on Saturday 82-77 as 2.5 point underdogs. The win put the Panthers at 21-8 SU overall but they are only 9-7 SU in Conference Play. They have also struggled on the road this season posting only a 6-6 SU mark. Tonight will be their second game versus the Mountaineers after winning the first one on their home court 55-54. Both teams shot horrible in that one as Pittsburgh hit only 40% of their shots while West Virginia managed only 35.8%. That performance by the Panthers was much below their season average where the offense puts up 74 points per game on 45.7% shooting. Pittsburgh has had an advantage under the boards all season out rebounding their opponents by a 38 to 35 margin. They will need to repeat their first game matchup performance that say they out rebound the Mountaineers 39-35 if they are going to make it their third win in a row. The public seems to believe that the Panthers road woes will continue to night as BetUs.com has them listed as a +5.5 road underdog.
Although the Mountaineers are coming off a College Basketball Picks road loss to UConn on Saturday that snapped a two game winning streak they have been tough at home posting an impressive 12-3 SU mark on the season. Overall West Virginia is 20-9 SU under first year head coach Bob Huggins but have posted only a 9-7 SU in Big East action. One of the reasons why West Virginia has been dominant at home is that their offense has averaged a potent 80.4 points per game on 46.9% shooting from the floor while their defense has shut down their opponents who have averaged only 60.1 points per game on their home court. They did get beat under the glass versus the Panthers in the first meeting but have held a rebounding edge during the season with a 37-33 advantage at home. Although they have no hope of taking the regular season crown it does appear that Huggins will once again take a team to the Big Dance.
Protecting the ball in any College Basketball Picks action certainly positions a team to win but it’s been especially effective for the Mountaineers as they are 8-1 ATS in home games after 2 straight games committing 11 or less turnovers over the last 2 seasons. Pittsburgh will not be a pushover however as they ring up a 19-7 ATS mark after a game giving up 5 or less offensive rebounds since 1997.
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